1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to an electrical connector, and more particularly to an improvement in an electrical connector which has a housing, a plurality of conductive contacts arranged on the housing for coming into contact with connecting terminals provided on a flat circuit device, such as a flexible printed circuit board (hereinafter, referred to as an FPC) or a flexible flat cable assembly (hereinafter, referred to as an FFC) inserted in the housing, and holding means for engaging with the flat circuit device inserted in the housing to hold the same and for disengaging the flat circuit device from holding by the holding meas.
2. Description of Related Art including information disclosed under 37 CFR 1.97 and 37 CFR 1.98
A flat circuit device, such as a relatively small-sized FPC or FFC, used in electronic apparatus of various kinds is often mounted on a main solid circuit board, on which various electrical parts are directly mounted, with an electrical connector which is fixed to and connected electrically with the main solid circuit board. The electrical connector thus used has a plurality of conductive contacts, an end portion of each of which is connected electrically with a conductive circuit pattern portion formed on the main solid circuit board and which are provided for coming into contact with connecting terminals provided on the flat circuit device, and is operative to cause each of the connecting terminals provided on the flat circuit board to be connected electrically through the conductive contact with the conductive circuit pattern portion formed on the main solid circuit board.
A first type of previously proposed electrical connector used for connecting a flat circuit device, such as an FPC, with a main solid circuit board, has a housing made of insulator, which is mounted on the main solid circuit board and has an opening through which at least a part of the flat circuit device is inserted into the housing. On the housing, a plurality of conductive contacts are provided to be arranged along the opening and connected electrically with circuit terminals provided on the main solid circuit board. These conductive contacts are operative to come into contact respectively with a plurality of connecting terminals provided on a flat circuit device when the flat circuit device is inserted into the housing through the opening provided thereon. The previously proposed electrical connector of the first type has also an actuator which is provided to be rotatable in regard to the housing so as to engage with each of the conductive contacts arranged on the housing or to come into contact with the flat circuit device inserted in the housing. The actuator is operative to move an operating portion of each of the conductive contacts so that each of the conductive contacts is put in press-contact with a corresponding one of the connecting terminals provided on the flat circuit device inserted in the housing when the actuator is rotated in a first direction in regard to the housing and to allow the operating portion of each of the conductive contacts to move so that each of the conductive contacts is released from the press-contact with the connecting terminal when the actuator is rotated in a second direction opposite to the first direction in regard to the housing, or to push the flat circuit device inserted in the housing so that each of the connecting terminals provided on the flat circuit device is put in press-contact with a corresponding one of the conductive contacts arranged on the housing when the actuator is rotated in a first direction in regard to the housing and to cease to push the flat circuit device so that each of the connecting terminals provided on the flat circuit device is released from the press-contact with the conductive contact when the actuator is rotated in a second direction opposite to the first direction in regard to the housing. With the conductive contacts arranged on the housing put in press-contact with the connecting terminals provided on the flat circuit device, the flat circuit device is put in electrical connection with the main solid circuit board.
A second type of previously proposed electrical connector used for connecting a flat circuit device with a main solid circuit board has a housing to be mounted on the main solid circuit board and a plurality of conductive contacts in the same manner as the previously proposed electrical connector of the first type mentioned above and in addition a conductive shell which covers partially the housing and is grounded to be operative to contribute to adjustment on characteristic impedance of each of the conductive contacts and to shield the conductive contacts in the housing from electromagnetic wave noises coming from the outside, but does not have an actuator which is rotatable in regard to the housing as mentioned above. In the previously proposed electrical connector of the second type, when a flat circuit device is inserted into the housing through an opening provided thereon, each of the conductive contacts provided in the housing to be arranged along the opening is automatically put in contact with a corresponding one of connecting terminals provided on the flat circuit device. That is, the flat circuit device is put in electrical connection with the main solid circuit board by means of only inserting correctly the flat circuit device into the housing through the opening provided thereon.
In the above-mentioned previously proposed electrical connector with or without the actuator rotatable in regard to the housing, when the flat circuit device is inserted into the housing through the opening provided thereon and the conductive contacts arranged on the housing are put in press-contact with the connecting terminals provided on the flat circuit device so that the flat circuit device is put in electrical connection with the main solid circuit board, it is required to prevent the flat circuit device inserted in the housing from getting out of the housing unwillingly. It is a matter of course that it is necessary for the flat circuit device inserted in the housing to be held stably so as not to get out of the housing unwillingly in order to keep the conductive contacts arranged on the housing properly in a condition of contact with the connecting terminals provided on the flat circuit device.
Accordingly, there has been also proposed previously an electrical connector belonging to the above-described first type having the housing, the conductive contact and the actuator, which is provided with holding means for engaging with a flat circuit device, such as an FPC or FFC, inserted in the housing so as to hold the same to be prevented from getting out of the housing unwillingly, as shown in, for example, the Japanese patent application published before examination under publication number 2003-100370 (hereinafter, referred to as published patent document 1).
In addition, there has been further proposed previously an electrical connector belonging to the above-described second type having the housing, the conductive contact and the conductive shell, which is provided with holding means for engaging with a flat circuit device, such as an FPC or FFC, inserted in the housing so as to hold the same to be prevented from getting out of the housing unwillingly, as shown in, for example, the Japanese patent application published before examination under publication number 2009-231069 (hereinafter, referred to as published patent document 2).
In the electrical connector shown in the published patent document 1, a couple of reinforcing metal members (20) are attached respectively to end portions of the housing (2) aligned in a direction along which the conductive contacts (contacts (6)) are arranged. Each of the reinforcing metal members (20) is provided with the holding means (a resilient supporting arm portion (25)) which is operative to come into contact with the flat circuit device (a flexible circuit board (30)) inserted in the housing through an opening (3) provided thereon to push the same up or to engage with an engaging portion (an engaging opening or notch (32)) provided on the flat circuit device. When the actuator (a pressure member (12)) which is provided to be rotatable in regard to the housing is rotated from a first position at which the actuator keeps rising from the housing to a second position at which the actuator keeps lying down on the housing, the flat circuit device inserted in the housing is pushed by the actuator to the holding means formed in the reinforcing metal member.
As a result, the flat circuit device inserted in the housing is put between the actuator and the holding means formed in the reinforcing metal member to be held thereby or the flat circuit device inserted in the housing is directly held by the holding means formed in the reinforcing metal member which is put in engagement with the engaging portion provided on the flat circuit device, so as to be prevented from getting out of the housing unwillingly.
Then, when the actuator is rotated from the second position at which the actuator keeps lying down on the housing to the first position at which the actuator keeps rising from the housing, the flat circuit device inserted in the housing is ceased to be pushed by the actuator and released from a condition wherein the flat circuit device is put between the actuator and the holding means formed in the reinforcing metal member to be held thereby or the flat circuit device is directly held by the holding means formed in the reinforcing metal member which is put in engagement with the engaging portion provided on the flat circuit device, so as to be able to get out of the housing.
In the electrical connector shown in the published patent document 2, the conductive shell (an ejecting plate (8)) is provided to be able to slide in regard to the housing (an insulated housing (5)). The conductive shell is resiliently forced by a resilient member (7), such as a coil spring or the like, put between the conductive shell and the housing in a first direction opposite to a second direction along which the flat circuit device (an FPC (2)) is inserted into the housing. A couple of holding means (resilient holding nail members (6)) are attached respectively to end portions of the housing aligned in a direction along which the conductive contacts (contact pins (4)) are arranged. Each of the holding means is provided at a top end portion thereof with a holding portion (6c) for engaging with an engaging portion (a recess (2d)) provided on the flat circuit device inserted in the housing through an opening (3) provided thereon, so as to constitute a locking device for locking the flat circuit device.
Further, an ejecting projection (6d) is formed on each of the holding means to be put in an opening formed on the conductive shell. A tapered portion (8a) of the opening formed on the conductive shell engages with the ejecting projection formed on the holding means when the conductive shell is moved to slide in regard to the housing.
Then, when the flat circuit device is inserted into the housing through the opening provided thereon under a condition wherein the ejecting projection formed on each of the holding means is put in the opening formed on the conductive shell and the tapered portion of the opening formed on the conductive shell does not engage with the ejecting projection, the holding portion of each of the holding means engages with the engaging portion provided on the flat circuit device to hold the flat circuit device. As a result, the flat circuit device inserted in the housing is held by the holding means to be prevented from getting out of the housing unwillingly.
After that, when the conductive shell is moved to slide in regard to the housing in the second direction along which the flat circuit device is inserted into the housing against the resilient force exerted by the resilient member by which the conductive shell is resiliently forced in the first direction opposite to the second direction, the tapered portion of the opening formed on the conductive shell engages with the ejecting projection formed on each of the holding means to push the same. Thereby, the holding means is so moved as to cause the holding portion of the holding means to disengage from the engaging portion provided on the flat circuit device. As a result, the flat circuit device is put in a condition to be able to get out of the housing.
In each of the electrical connectors thus proposed previously, which is provided with the holding means operative to prevent the flat circuit device inserted in the housing from getting out of the housing unwillingly, the holding means operative to be put in operation to prevent the flat circuit device inserted in the housing from getting out of the housing unwillingly is provided to shift its position in response to rotational movements of the actuator provided to be rotatable in regard to the housing or the conductive shell for covering partially the housing is provided to be movable in regard to the housing and the holding means operative to be put in operation to prevent the flat circuit device inserted in the housing from getting out of the housing unwillingly is attached to the housing for engaging with the conductive shell.
In the case of the previously proposed electrical connector which has the holding means operative to shift its position in response to the rotational movements of the actuator provided to be rotatable in regard to the housing, the actuator provided to be rotatable in regard to the housing is positively required and this results in problems or disadvantages that the number of constitutive parts of the electrical connector increases undesirably and a production cost of the electrical connector rises disagreeably. In addition, it is necessary for causing the holding means to engage with or disengage from the flat circuit device inserted in the housing to rotate the actuator in regard to the housing. This results in undesirable increase in an open space around the electrical connector.
In the case of the previously proposed electrical connector which has the conductive shell provided to be movable in regard to the housing and the holding means attached to the housing for engaging with the conductive shell, since the conductive shell is operative to move in regard to the housing, any part of the conductive shell can not be used for fastening the electrical connector to the main solid circuit board so that a separate holding-down member for fastening the electrical connector to the main solid circuit board is positively required. This results in problems or disadvantages that the number of constitutive parts of the electrical connector increases undesirably and a production cost of the electrical connector rises disagreeably.
Further, in the electrical connector thus constituted to have the conductive shell provided to be movable in regard to the housing, a specific mechanism by which the conductive shell is supported to be movable in regard to the housing is required. This results in complication in the constitution of the electrical connector and a further rise in the production cost of the electrical connector.